October 18, 2017
Report warns of growing cybersecurity threat to organisations by their own staff
An overwhelming majority of employees are deliberately seeking out information they are not permitted to access, exposing a major cybersecurity problem among today’s workforce, claims new research published by One Identity. The survey, conducted by Dimensional Research, polled more than 900 IT security professionals on trends and challenges related to managing employee access to corporate data. Among key findings, a remarkable 92 percent of respondents report that employees at their organisations try to access information that is not necessary for their day-to-day work – with nearly one in four (23 percent) admitting this behaviour happens frequently. Most alarmingly, the report indicates that IT security professionals themselves are among the worst offenders of corporate data snooping. One in three respondents admit to having accessed sensitive information that is not necessary for their day-to-day work.
Nearly three quarters (71 percent) of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) say that staff absenteeism is having a big impact on profitability suggests a new survey from Moorepay. The research found that many UK SMEs are experiencing higher than average absenteeism in their business. According to the Office for National Statistics, the average number of sick days for a UK employee is 
Organisations are taking serious security risks by allowing employees to access workplace IT systems remotely while on their summer holiday, a telecoms company has warned. According to research by the corporate IT and cyber-security arm of Deutsche Telekom, nearly a third of employees (31 percent) use free Wi-Fi hotspots, and nearly a quarter (24 percent) use them for work-related emails and documents. These are a big danger area as they are insecure and easy for hackers to clone (getting access to all email and web traffic, including any work documents and passwords). It also warns that 28 percent of employees email work documents to and from their personal email, despite this creating numerous security problems. Ten percent use free USB charging points at airports and stations; and these ports can be used to transfer viruses and malware to unsuspecting users. The blame cannot solely be placed on the employees though, as just 28 percent of employees have never in their working career had any cyber security training to protect themselves and their employer.
One in three (34 percent) UK workers are dealing with anxiety, depression or stress, which is affecting their ability to carry out their day-to-day roles, claims a new report. Two in five (39 percent) have taken time off work or reduced their responsibilities because of their health, and of those, 39 percent did not feel comfortable telling their employer about the issue according to the PwC research. Nearly a quarter (23 percent) think their organisation does not take employee wellbeing seriously and more than half (54 percent) work for companies which do not offer health benefits such as counselling, health screening and subsidised gym memberships. The research suggests that Health and wellbeing has a significant impact on performance with four out of five workers (83 percent) believing that their wellbeing influences how productive they are. Pressures such as dealing with customers and clients, and long hours have the biggest impact on workplace wellbeing. The survey respondents also indicated a belief that technology can play a part in addressing health, with almost half saying they would be open to using an app to improve their wellbeing.
